I was driven to dwell on this difficult topic by what's happening in the US and a Facebook post by someone whom I follow and whose writings I enjoy. That Facebook post read: "43% of USA are white evangelicals, most supported Trump. USA has the most well armed ignorant people of any developed country!"
It's a condescending statement that in one broad stroke, dumbs down on 125m people. Implicit in the statement is the allegory that dogma breeds ignorance. It's a closet thinking that those who believe in faith (dogma) are not open to new ideas. This is postmodern liberal dogma. It's a view that boomerangs because one who subscribes to it must surely themselves be dogmatic.
It's a condescending statement that in one broad stroke, dumbs down on 125m people. Implicit in the statement is the allegory that dogma breeds ignorance. It's a closet thinking that those who believe in faith (dogma) are not open to new ideas. This is postmodern liberal dogma. It's a view that boomerangs because one who subscribes to it must surely themselves be dogmatic.
The big bang of knowledge that burst forth in the Renaissance and brought Europe out of the Dark Ages was due in large part to the role of churches and their missionary work that provided the knowledge base of the time. A role that is still actively pursued to this day. It is undeniable fact that men of faith count amongst the many great names in the arts, sciences, mathematics and philosophies, in the past and present. To name a few - Thomas Aquinas, William Ockham, John Milton, GK Chesterton, CS Lewis, George Washington, William Gladstone, Rembrandt, Johan Sebastian Bach, Isaac Newton, Louis Pasteur, Robert Boyle, etc. It's notable that Darwin himself never denied the existence of God. Renee Descartes, despite the devil in his thoughts, tried to justify the existence of God. Einstein himself believed in the existence of God, at least in the Spinoza idea of what God is.
One of the great thinkers of our times who clearly identified a destructive sociopolitical development of mankind way ahead of many people, is a man of dogma, Pope Benedict XVI. In his last homily as Cardinal Ratzinger in 2005, he warned of the 'dictatorship of relativism'. Ratzinger was speaking in the context of the church post Vatican II.
A backgrounder for those who don't understand.
In the 16th century, Martin Luther caused a serious rift in the Catholic Church over disagreement about interpretation and practices. It led to the Reformation Movement. Thus was born all manner of denominations of protestant and thousands of evangelical churches.The idea of 'solas scriptura' was the seed. This means interpreting on the bible alone and ignore other man-made traditions. But the question is, on whose interpretation? To each, their own.
In 1870 the Vatican Ecumenical Council (Vatican I) was held. Bishops all over the world gathered in Rome to settle doctrinal issues. The doctrine of 'papal infallibility' was established by the council. This is a cornerstone dogma of the Catholic Church. It states that by virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the pope when appealing to his highest authority, is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine. In other words, he has the final say on matters of doctrine.
Bishops gathered once again between 1962 to 1965 for Vatican II. For hundreds of years, Catholics had more or less been a cloistered religion, interacting with the world only through its missionary work. Vatican II, in very basic terms, sort of relaxed on some practices in order to engage more with the world. For example, mass was no longer required to be in Latin.
Vatican II brought with it increasing challenge of liberal theology. Deviationist ideologies took root amongst a large homosexual clergy and those skewed toward social justice idealism. The inclination to subjective revision of scriptures was the essence of the danger that Ratzinger warned.
But what does relativism mean? It is the idea that we cannot hold any TRUTH as fixed or absolute. Everything depends on the point of view of the individual. Thus what is correct for a person is influenced by factors such as culture, society, what's been fed into his brain, his agenda, his motivation, etc.. TRUTH is thus relative and subjective.
The clash of Truths is thus one of progressive thoughts verses the conservatives. Those with faith cling to old values such as marriage is between a man and woman, no sex outside of marriage, no killings etc, value systems the progressive liberals brand as dogmatic.
In the modern world, we live in coexistence under codes of laws of the country. Laws are nothing but the establishment of ABSOLUTES through brute force by legislation. Dura lex, sed lex - the law is harsh, but it is the law. Without laws, ie, without Absolutes, there will be chaos. We are aware the law may not be fair to some in some situations, or they may be interpreted differently. Thus we have the courts to sort things out.
We are born into this world with certain rights - the right to free speech, to association, to religion, to choose the life we want. Where did these rights come from? Before there was Law, there is the Creator. Those with faith understands these rights are God-given. In countries where democracy thrives, man legislated Bills of Rights to enshrine them in their constitution. These legislation is there to protect us from overreach by our government, or those that governs.
The rights are not free gifts from God. They are a package deal that comes with our acceptance of Truth where Absolutes are established. Take away the Absolutes, and Truth crumbles, which puts our rights at great risk. We are living in times where relativism is like a wicked smog that envelopes Absolutes, and Truth is getting more and more difficult to see through the fog. This is the situation that Ratzinger saw with clarity in the Catholic Church. A major part of the Judeo-Western world is in the same inferno, most especially in the USA.
The US had been predominantly conservative for hundreds of years. When progressive liberals make up a small portion of the population, people live and let live. When demographics shift and progressive liberal population grows, their demands explode. A recent Gallup poll shows Liberals have increased substantially to 26% of the population. Their percentages are much more pronounced in cities and in influential positions in academia and entertainment industry.
The US is where Ratzinger's Dictatorship of Relativism is played out in real time and we all have front row seats. This is a situation where those with power, either by brute force, disingenuity, deceit, propaganda, undue influence, or entrapping people via honey pots or corruption, normalises their version of Truths. The Obama administration went down this rabbit hole and Hillary Clinton declared war on religion in 2016 with her statement “deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed.” The Democratic Party's strategy of identity politics is a fertile ground for relativism. On every issue there is a position to take, where Truths are shapeshifted to fit their agenda for ultimate control. Killing babies is not to be viewed as human rights, but women's choice. Racial equality is not a matter of leveling the playing field and assisting the under-privileged, but if you are born white, you are a racist supremacist. The list goes on.
As the Left grows stronger, dictatorship of relativism manifests itself more openly. The cancel culture is now exploding. If you do not share in their ideas, you get cancelled out. Your Twitter or Facebook account is closed, banks and other businesses deny you service, you are on no-fly list, etc. Statutes that represent something not in their ideology get pulled down. Soon literature will get cancelled - conservative ideas will be wiped off. There are now calls for McCarthy List of Trump supporters. If you are unfortunate enough to be in the blacklist you may loose your job, or get marched off to re-education camps. Think this is so un-American it will never happen in The Land Of The Free? It is already happening, and the strange thing is that ignorant dogmatic people understands US is sliding into communism, whilst the intelligent un-dogmatic ones don't. They are not 'woke' enough, yet.
The Democratic Party today is in name only. It has revealed its true identity. Now it is a de facto Communist Party. In the Russian Delusion case, President Trump was impeached in a kangaroo court in Congress. For the Assault on Capitol case, President Trump was impeached in Congress in 7 hours, with no evidence, no hearings, no witnesses, no legal presentations. Were do we see such application of justice in action? Only in facist, dictatorial communist regimes.
A review of Trump's speech at the protest rally showed him reminding supporters they are a party of Law and Order and they should conduct the protest peacefully. Nowhere in his measured speech, in non-fiery tones, can a reasonable mind say there was incitement. That is not the Truth the Democrats and leftist media want. Trump incited the attack, period.
From our front seat row, let's see where Conservatives (who believe in God and have been framed dogmatic ignorants) hold Absolutes as fundamental and where Liberals' relativism twists the Truth about violence.
The inconsistencies and hypocrisy of Democrats and mainstream media on crowd violence is astounding.
For the past 2 years, violent protests by far left groups antifa and Black Lives Matter, have been tolerated, in fact appreciated and encouraged, by media and Democrats. Who can forget the mockery of the CNN billboard calling a 'mostly peaceful' BLM protest as the city burns behind the reporter.
It's true a few Democrats have condemned these violence, but there is a difference between responding to a question on TV, and a voluntary statement on the matter. We have to see through a public display, and their true self. Here are few of their views when the Left rioted :
- Nancy Pelosi has said she does not support riots, but she loved the sight of Hongkong burning in the riots. In Nov 2018, 200 leftist activities, with AOC, unlawfully barged into her office. 51 were arrested, but she said it's ok, let them protest (because they were leftists). To the National Guards currently in DC to protect the inauguration, Pelosi thanked them for their contribution to protect the constitution (because violence from Trump supporters is expected). But in June 2020 she wrote to Trump to condemn him for sending National Guards to help quell the BLM riots over death of George Floyd.
- Kamala Harris' coy dodge-the-question answer of she does'nt support riots, she supports BLM, and they are not going to stop (the rioting), and we should not let them (stop?). Kamala will not disclose details of antifa and BLM rioters who were arrested and released with bail money put up by a fund with Sorro's cash.
- Joe Biden has said he does not support violence, but in the campaigns, he refused to speak on his position on leftist violence. In the Biden-Trump debate, he said "antifa is just an idea".
- Chris Cuomo (NY Gov) "Show me where it says protesters are supposed to be polite and peaceful".
For Democrats and Liberals, violence is acceptable when perpetrated by the Left, antifa and BLM. But when it is the Right and Conservatives, it is insurrection. The rioters are insurgents and traitors. The Democrats' Truth was not the same when the White House was assaulted in 2017 as Trump took office.
In great contrast, Conservatives, Republicans and alternative right media (considered conspiracy sites by the Left), hold a moral high ground with consistency in their views on violence. They do not tolerate violence, from either the Left or the Right. Conservatives are the dogmatic folks who hold that violent protest is wrong. That is a Truth and it is Absolute. There are no subjective or relative opinions. The reaction of all conservatives to the Capitol assault have been exemplary. All those that mattered came out in full condemnation of the violence. They all said those that barged into the Capitol do not represent what Conservatives stand for, and they should be punished to the full extent of the law. There were no coy answers, no excuses, no evasion of fact. Every one, without exception - from Trump, to Fox News ardent supporters like Tucker Carlson and Judge Jeanie Piro, to various Republican Congressmen and Senators, right media like Epoch News, The Federalists, etc. And they said so with great passion as they lambasted those who barged into the Capitol building.
I shall end with this video (14 min) that perhaps sums up everything. This is Glenn Beck of Blaze TV, one of the most outspoken and ardent supporters of Trump. The passion of his anger at the attack on Capitol is evidently clear. This is representative of people who holds dear to the Absolutes. Watch Glenn talk of the Left and the Right, the Right and Wrong.
But what does relativism mean? It is the idea that we cannot hold any TRUTH as fixed or absolute. Everything depends on the point of view of the individual. Thus what is correct for a person is influenced by factors such as culture, society, what's been fed into his brain, his agenda, his motivation, etc.. TRUTH is thus relative and subjective.
The clash of Truths is thus one of progressive thoughts verses the conservatives. Those with faith cling to old values such as marriage is between a man and woman, no sex outside of marriage, no killings etc, value systems the progressive liberals brand as dogmatic.
In the modern world, we live in coexistence under codes of laws of the country. Laws are nothing but the establishment of ABSOLUTES through brute force by legislation. Dura lex, sed lex - the law is harsh, but it is the law. Without laws, ie, without Absolutes, there will be chaos. We are aware the law may not be fair to some in some situations, or they may be interpreted differently. Thus we have the courts to sort things out.
We are born into this world with certain rights - the right to free speech, to association, to religion, to choose the life we want. Where did these rights come from? Before there was Law, there is the Creator. Those with faith understands these rights are God-given. In countries where democracy thrives, man legislated Bills of Rights to enshrine them in their constitution. These legislation is there to protect us from overreach by our government, or those that governs.
The rights are not free gifts from God. They are a package deal that comes with our acceptance of Truth where Absolutes are established. Take away the Absolutes, and Truth crumbles, which puts our rights at great risk. We are living in times where relativism is like a wicked smog that envelopes Absolutes, and Truth is getting more and more difficult to see through the fog. This is the situation that Ratzinger saw with clarity in the Catholic Church. A major part of the Judeo-Western world is in the same inferno, most especially in the USA.
The US had been predominantly conservative for hundreds of years. When progressive liberals make up a small portion of the population, people live and let live. When demographics shift and progressive liberal population grows, their demands explode. A recent Gallup poll shows Liberals have increased substantially to 26% of the population. Their percentages are much more pronounced in cities and in influential positions in academia and entertainment industry.
The US is where Ratzinger's Dictatorship of Relativism is played out in real time and we all have front row seats. This is a situation where those with power, either by brute force, disingenuity, deceit, propaganda, undue influence, or entrapping people via honey pots or corruption, normalises their version of Truths. The Obama administration went down this rabbit hole and Hillary Clinton declared war on religion in 2016 with her statement “deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed.” The Democratic Party's strategy of identity politics is a fertile ground for relativism. On every issue there is a position to take, where Truths are shapeshifted to fit their agenda for ultimate control. Killing babies is not to be viewed as human rights, but women's choice. Racial equality is not a matter of leveling the playing field and assisting the under-privileged, but if you are born white, you are a racist supremacist. The list goes on.
As the Left grows stronger, dictatorship of relativism manifests itself more openly. The cancel culture is now exploding. If you do not share in their ideas, you get cancelled out. Your Twitter or Facebook account is closed, banks and other businesses deny you service, you are on no-fly list, etc. Statutes that represent something not in their ideology get pulled down. Soon literature will get cancelled - conservative ideas will be wiped off. There are now calls for McCarthy List of Trump supporters. If you are unfortunate enough to be in the blacklist you may loose your job, or get marched off to re-education camps. Think this is so un-American it will never happen in The Land Of The Free? It is already happening, and the strange thing is that ignorant dogmatic people understands US is sliding into communism, whilst the intelligent un-dogmatic ones don't. They are not 'woke' enough, yet.
The Democratic Party today is in name only. It has revealed its true identity. Now it is a de facto Communist Party. In the Russian Delusion case, President Trump was impeached in a kangaroo court in Congress. For the Assault on Capitol case, President Trump was impeached in Congress in 7 hours, with no evidence, no hearings, no witnesses, no legal presentations. Were do we see such application of justice in action? Only in facist, dictatorial communist regimes.
A review of Trump's speech at the protest rally showed him reminding supporters they are a party of Law and Order and they should conduct the protest peacefully. Nowhere in his measured speech, in non-fiery tones, can a reasonable mind say there was incitement. That is not the Truth the Democrats and leftist media want. Trump incited the attack, period.
From our front seat row, let's see where Conservatives (who believe in God and have been framed dogmatic ignorants) hold Absolutes as fundamental and where Liberals' relativism twists the Truth about violence.
The inconsistencies and hypocrisy of Democrats and mainstream media on crowd violence is astounding.For the past 2 years, violent protests by far left groups antifa and Black Lives Matter, have been tolerated, in fact appreciated and encouraged, by media and Democrats. Who can forget the mockery of the CNN billboard calling a 'mostly peaceful' BLM protest as the city burns behind the reporter.
It's true a few Democrats have condemned these violence, but there is a difference between responding to a question on TV, and a voluntary statement on the matter. We have to see through a public display, and their true self. Here are few of their views when the Left rioted :
- Nancy Pelosi has said she does not support riots, but she loved the sight of Hongkong burning in the riots. In Nov 2018, 200 leftist activities, with AOC, unlawfully barged into her office. 51 were arrested, but she said it's ok, let them protest (because they were leftists). To the National Guards currently in DC to protect the inauguration, Pelosi thanked them for their contribution to protect the constitution (because violence from Trump supporters is expected). But in June 2020 she wrote to Trump to condemn him for sending National Guards to help quell the BLM riots over death of George Floyd.
- Kamala Harris' coy dodge-the-question answer of she does'nt support riots, she supports BLM, and they are not going to stop (the rioting), and we should not let them (stop?). Kamala will not disclose details of antifa and BLM rioters who were arrested and released with bail money put up by a fund with Sorro's cash.
- Joe Biden has said he does not support violence, but in the campaigns, he refused to speak on his position on leftist violence. In the Biden-Trump debate, he said "antifa is just an idea".
- Chris Cuomo (NY Gov) "Show me where it says protesters are supposed to be polite and peaceful".
For Democrats and Liberals, violence is acceptable when perpetrated by the Left, antifa and BLM. But when it is the Right and Conservatives, it is insurrection. The rioters are insurgents and traitors. The Democrats' Truth was not the same when the White House was assaulted in 2017 as Trump took office.
In great contrast, Conservatives, Republicans and alternative right media (considered conspiracy sites by the Left), hold a moral high ground with consistency in their views on violence. They do not tolerate violence, from either the Left or the Right. Conservatives are the dogmatic folks who hold that violent protest is wrong. That is a Truth and it is Absolute. There are no subjective or relative opinions. The reaction of all conservatives to the Capitol assault have been exemplary. All those that mattered came out in full condemnation of the violence. They all said those that barged into the Capitol do not represent what Conservatives stand for, and they should be punished to the full extent of the law. There were no coy answers, no excuses, no evasion of fact. Every one, without exception - from Trump, to Fox News ardent supporters like Tucker Carlson and Judge Jeanie Piro, to various Republican Congressmen and Senators, right media like Epoch News, The Federalists, etc. And they said so with great passion as they lambasted those who barged into the Capitol building.
I shall end with this video (14 min) that perhaps sums up everything. This is Glenn Beck of Blaze TV, one of the most outspoken and ardent supporters of Trump. The passion of his anger at the attack on Capitol is evidently clear. This is representative of people who holds dear to the Absolutes. Watch Glenn talk of the Left and the Right, the Right and Wrong.